2 Nobel laureates to address Social Forum

MUMBAI: Nobel laureates Shirin Ebadiand Joseph Stiglitz, United Nations Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinsonand French farm-union leader Josi Bovi are among those, who have confirmed theirparticipation at the World Social Forum 2004, which will be held in Mumbai fromJanuary 16 to 21.According to the WSF office, Indian speakersinclude Marxist thinker Prabhat Patnaik, peasant economist Utsa Patnaik, socialactivist Medha Patkar, women''s leader Brinda Karat, journalist P Sainath, rightto information activist Aruna Roy, actress Shabana Azmi and historian TanikaSarkar.The WSF, which is predicated on the belief that Another WorldIs Possible, brings together mass organisations and social movements to buildalliances to create a more just world and to oppose unfair patterns ofglobalisation.More than 75,000 people are expected to gather inMumbai for the five-day event, which will be held at the NESCO grounds, off theWestern Express highway, Goregaon. The forum will feature at least 1,200seminars, in addition to large public conferences and meetings that will beattended by 20,000 people.Here are brief profiles of some of thespeakers from outside India at WSF 2004: Shirin Ebadi (Iran): Thisyear''s Nobel Peace laureate, the Iranian lawyer and human rights activist ShirinEbadi was one the first women judges in Iran. She now works as a lawyer and alsoteaches at the University of Tehran. With Islam as her starting point, Ebadicampaigns for peaceful solutions to social problems, and argues for a newinterpretation of Islamic law that is in harmony with vital human rights,democracy, equality before the law, religious freedom and freedom ofspeech.Joseph E Stiglitz (USA): A Nobel economics laureate, Stiglitzis Professor of economics and finance at Columbia University in NewYork.During the Clinton regime, he served as chairman of the USCouncil of Economic Advisors from 1993-95. He then became chief economist andsenior vice-president of the World Bank from 1997. Prof Stiglitz resigned hisposition at the World Bank following disagreements over the conditions the WorldBank and IMF imposed on countries following the East Asian currency crisis. Hisrecent book, ''Globalisation and its Discontents'', has gained world-wide acclaimfor its sharp critique of the policies of the World Bank and theIMF.Mary Robinson (Ireland): Mary Robinson is the former presidentof Ireland and has been United Nations'' high commissioner for humanrights.Josi Bovi (France): Josi Bovi has travelled the worldlecturing anyone who will listen on the evils of globalisation and geneticallymodifed crops. Bovi has earned the nickname ''Asterix''—after the Frenchcomic strip character—for his determination to repel alien invaders in theform of foreign capitalist concerns. A sheep-farmer and producer of thecelebrated Roquefort cheese, he has become the standardbearer of the fightagainst new economic and gastronomic imperialism.He is remembered for demolishinga half-built Mc-Donalds in Millau in 1999, for which he spent three weeks inprison. Ahmed Ben Bella (Algeria): Ben Bella was Algeria''s first president,holding office from 1963 to ''65. A war hero during World War II, he becameactive in the Algerian battle for independence from the French soon after. In1965, he was deposed by an old ally, Houari Boumedienne, and placed under housearrest for 15 years until 1980.He lived in exile in Switzerland,striving for a democratic Algeria. He was allowed to return only 10 years later,in 1990.Madam Nguyen Thi Binh (Vietnam): The Vice-President of theSocialist Republic of Vietnam, Madam Nguyen Thi Binh, took part in the movementof students and intellectuals against the French colonialists and Americaninterventionists at Saigon-Cholon (in present-day Ho Chi MinhCity).Radhika Coomaraswamy (Sri Lanka): A noted human rightscampaigner, she is the director of the International Centre for Ethnic Studiesin Colombo and a member of the Global Faculty of the New York University Schoolof Law. She is the UN special rapporteur on violence.George Monbit(UK): George Monbiot is the author of the best-selling books, ''The Age ofConsent: a manifesto for a new world order'' and ''Captive State: the corporatetakeover of Britain''; as well as the investigative travel books ''PoisonedArrows'', ''Amazon Watershed'' and ''No Man''s Land''. He writes a weekly column for''The Guardian''.Asma Jehangir (Pakistan): Asma Jehangir is one ofPakistan''s most famous human rights advocate.Yossi Beilin (Israel)is the former justice minister of his country.Bernard Cassen(France) is the general editor of ''Le Monde Diplomatique'' and the founder of theATTAC, a movement against neoliberal globalisation.Jeremy Corbin(Britain) is a British Labour Party MP and vocal anti-war activist.